As Andy Moles was prematurely celebrating some kind of victory that the rest of us were struggling to see, the Indians were busy blowing out the Black Cap coach's candles and turning the saving of a test match into what can only be described as a cakewalk.

"We've had an excellent test match ... there is a lot of confidence in our dressing room," Moles claimed before the final day at Napier, a day in which the only minor threat to the Indian's rescue mission turned out to be dodgy umpiring.

Heaven knows what Moles would rate as a bad test match, and we can only all hope that it is an occasion which never arrives.

In a new age of vibrant test cricket, the Napier clash was as retro as the city's famous buildings and the Black Caps never came close to victory.

Moles might have been jumping out of his skin in delight, but this test turned into a yawn-fest and one in which the tourists publicly revelled in draining the home side's third test chances by making them sweat for hour upon hour in the field.

It was viewing only made acceptable by the excellence, skill and knowledge of the television commentary team. They are a loose and quirky lot - Ian Smith, Simon Doull, Martin Crowe and co - but in the main they combine into a masterful and entertaining squad, with no fear of giving sharp and well-reasoned criticism, and are by far the best in the New Zealand television sports business.

Cricket has always lent itself to great radio and TV commentary, and it had to be good in Napier.

The only respite at times were views of the gorgeous blue coastal water, a substance that seemed in short supply when it came to growing grass on the pitch.

Yet flat deck or no flat deck, New Zealand's bowling was found wanting. If only New Zealand's cricket leaders could save their hot air for something useful, like offering our ace of pace Shane Bond the apology he deserves with a heartfelt invitation to take up the cudgels once more for the national side.

New Zealand's batting was stupendous in this test, yet aided by a deck as flat as the celebrations should have been. The question New Zealand Cricket needs to ask itself is how it can better control the condition of test wickets in future. This is no incidental business. The state of those precious 22 yards is paramount to the state of the game. The Napier tarmac should never be seen again.